The Reid Effect: Reversed
by Ren Kayashima
Summary: All he wanted to do was eat his meal in peace, instead he get's interrupted by an eight-year-old and her strange question. TEMPORARILY ON HIATUS
1. Chapter 1

Author: Ren Kayashima

Rating: T

Disclaimer: I really hate that I have to do this. I do not own Criminal Minds. The title and its characters belong to CBS and its original creator.

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Chapter One: Are you a barnacle?

Reid sat in a classic diner. He had just finished a case with the team in Boston, and as much as he wanted to crawl into bed after a long nights work, he needed food. He found the nearest place to his apartment and walked in to obtain the proper nourishment his body desired.

The New Haven Diner had the classic nineteen fifties atmosphere with its bright red pleather seats, matching booths, shiny white Formica tabletops, and sparkling metal to line the edges. It was filled to medium occupancy with the elderly enjoying the benefits of the early bird special, and the young teenagers who needed a place to hang out after a day cramped in a desk.

He sat in one of the booth dipping a fry into his ranch dressing over and over as he thought about this last case. He stopped dipping the fry and let it fall limp against the dish when a bit of fiery red caught his eye. He turned to find a small girl standing in front of the table, smiling at him.

The little girl looked to be about ten and had red hair and bright green eyes. She was maybe three foot four, and her face was sprinkled with tons of freckles. Her cheeks were slightly flushed from the cold weather outside, telling Reid that she had only entered the diner a moment ago. She wore a pair of simple jeans and a kid sized grey duffel coat to keep her warm. She had on bright pink gloves to math her pink rain boots.

"Hello?" he asked moving farther into the booth to distance himself from the child.

The little girl pointed to the gun on his hip. "Are you a cop?" she asked.

Reid nodded as he eyed the girl warily. He looked around trying, hoping really, to find the girl's parents. He spotted a small pink polka-dotted backpack sitting on one of the benches in the booth across the walkway from him.

"Are you lost?" he asked sitting up a bit.

The little girl shook her head vigorously, her smiled growing. She started giggling when she stopped. She sat on the bench where her backpack sat and started to swing her legs.

Reid started to eat his food again, hoping the girl would find some way to entertain herself. He occasionally slid his gaze over to her and she would look up and smile. He turned in his seat to face the girl once more.

"Where are your parents?" he asked. Surely someone was responsible for the child.

"They're in the desert," the girl answered. "Can I see your badge?" she asked hopefully.

"Which desert?" Reid asked thinking of hundreds of deserts, but none nearby.

"Iraq," the girl answered obviously not understanding what was going on overseas. "Now can I see your badge?"

Reid frowned. Both her parents were in the military. He smiled slightly after a minute and pulled out his credentials and opened them. The little girl hopped off her bench and walked over and began reading the top part. Her mouth moving as she formed the words in her head.

"Superversory Special Agent Dr. Spencer Reid," she read aloud. "You're a doctor? That's so cool."

"Supervisory," Reid corrected. "What's your name?"

"Katie McDonough, I'm eight," she stated proudly holding her hand out for him to shake.

Reid looked at her hand and then back at her smiling face. He took her much smaller hand in his and she shook it quickly.

"Can I call you Spencer?" Katie asked.

Reid swallowed before nodding. Katie slid into the bench in front of him. She removed her coat to reveal a long sleeve shirt with a glittery whit snowflake.

"Are you a barnacle Spencer?" she asked.

Reid's eyes widened and he looked around for help once more. It didn't come. "What?"

"I heard my sister when she was talking with Uncle Mark, and he said that people are barnacles because they don't do anything fun. They always do the same thing over and over," she explained.

"And that makes them Barnacles?" he asked confused. What do barnacles have to do with human behavior?

"I don't get it," Katie shrugged. She rested he chin on her hand. "Did you like school when you were eight?"

Reid nodded feeling the slightest bit more relaxed around her. "Yeah, I did."

"I like school, but my teacher isn't very nice," Katie said as she ran a finger over the polished white table, creating only something she could see. "What was your favorite subject?"

"I like math," Reid answered. "If your parents are in the desert, who do you live with?"

Kate looked towards the back of the diner at the cash register and pointed to the man currently counting money behind it. The man was in his late twenties and had short dirty blond hair and blue eyes. "He's my Uncle Sean," she explained. "Me and my sister live with him."

A teenager came rushing in rubbing her bare hands together. She turned down the walkway and walked towards Reid. She looked to be about five foot four. She had the same red hair, green eyes, and scattered freckles as Katie, so Reid could only assume that this was the sister the eight year old had just mentioned.

The teen was in a pair of black jean and a double breasted black wool jacket. On her back was an overstuffed black backpack. She bobbed her head to music that only she could hear and pulled a small playbook from her pocket.

The teenager stopped at the booth where Katie's backpack had been place and she began looking around as she slid the backpack of her shoulders. She turned and looked at Katie before turning her gaze to Reid.

"Katie, what has mom told you about talking to strangers," the teen scolded. She looked at Reid. "I'm so sorry, was she bothering you?"

"Spencer is a cop," Katie smiled. "So he's a good guy."

The teen looked at Reid and raised a well groomed eyebrow. How could _he_ be a cop? "You don't look like a cop. You don't mind if I ask to see your badge."

Reid shook his head as he pulled his credentials out once more. She was playing the role of protective big sister. She took the small black folder and opened it and gave it a thorough reading before handing it back to him. "He's not just a cop Katie, he works for the FBI."

"What's that?" Katie asked innocently.

"Their special cops," the girl answered. She turned back to Reid and held out her hand. "Hi, I'm Faye McDonough. Katie's my little sister, so you can understand me making sure you are who you say you are."

Reid found his opportunity to end his confusion about the barnacles. "She asked me if I was a barnacle," he said after he shook her hand. He took another fry from his plate, abandoning the ranch-logged one in the dipping dish.

Faye paused before smiling. "It's just an analogy," she said. "People are like barnacles in that they drift through life until they find something, like a ship, to attach to. In this case the ship is their comfort zone. Once the barnacle attaches to the ship it proceeds to digest its own brain, because it's no longer needed. In the case of people, it means those who don't take healthy risk and confine themselves only to what feels comfortable," she explained.

Reid nodded in understanding. Faye bit her lip slight and turned back to the booth across the walkway. She set her backpack down and started unloading its contents. She pulled out a neon green graphing calculator and set it down next to a green binder.

"Did you come up with that analogy?" Reid asked after a minute of silence.

Faye kept her back to the agent but shook her head as she pulled a green notebook computer and set it down.

"No, it was something my Uncle Mark read," Faye answered. She looked over her shoulder at Katie, "Time for homework, I'm going to get us some pie." She opened the computer and turned it on before walking back towards the kitchen.

Katie let out a small childish groan and slid out of Reid's booth and back into her designated spot. "But I don't want to do times tables," she complained as she opened her backpack.

Reid smiled a little bit. He sat up and continued to eat his meal as Faye came back with two slices of pie. Katie looked over at Reid.

"Spencer, are you a Barnacle?" she asked again as she picked up a fork and stabbed her chocolate crème pie bringing a large piece over to her small mouth.

Faye grabbed the eight-year-olds coat from Reid's booth before sitting down on the bench opposite Katie.

"I don't think so," Reid answered.

"Okay," Katie nodded as she stuck a finger full of whip cream into her mouth.

"Wipe your face off Katie, and use your hand sanitizer when you're done with the pie," Faye stated as she stripped herself of her wool coat to reveal a purple thermal long sleeve shirt under a white hooded zip up vest. "Pull your homework out. If you need help in math again just ask."

Katie's face lit up as she was struck with an idea. She jumped out of the booth and hopped over to Reid. "Spencer, you like math will you help me with my times tables?" she asked.

This wasn't supposed to happen. Children don't like Reid. He was a socially awkward genius who made children run away and hide behind their parents in terror. Some parents thought he was a pedophile.

"Faye reached outside of the booth and pulled Katie back. "Katie, let Dr. Reid eat in peace."

Finally the sister's uncle came over and looked at Reid. "I'm sorry, is Katie bothering you?" he asked.

Reid shook his head when he realized that he didn't mind Katie talking to him. He just wondered why Katie was different from other children.

The sister's uncle held out his hand. "Sean McDonough, I own this diner."

Faye looked up from a newspaper article on her computer and looked at Reid. "The diner has been in the family for sixty years. Ownership is decided by who is most capable. My dad actually owns the Italian restaurant our family started thirty years ago," she explained.

"Spencer will you help me with math?" Katie asked again raising her voice up a bit more.

Faye dropped her head and let out a long sigh. "I'm sure he has better things to do."

Reid looked at his cold fries and then at Sean. Sean shrugged.

"If it's okay with you, I'm fine with it. Katie seems to like you, and Faye hasn't called the cops, so that's a good sign," Sean said. "Plus, if you walk out of this diner with Katie, I'll grab the shot gun I keep behind the cash register and shoot you."

Reid gulped. Katie started bouncing uncontrollably and Faye let her go.

Reid sighed. "Yes, I'll help you," he said moving himself and his plate over to the little girls table.

Faye pulled a jar of blank white dice out of Katie's backpack and held them out to the doctor. He took them and looked at her for an explanation. "Group them into sets based on the problems, it will help Katie understand."

"What are you working on?" Reid asked.

"Psych research paper on people's fears and comforts." She answered not looking up.

"What grade are you in?" he asked as he poured some dice into his hand.

"I'm a senior," Faye answered nonchalantly. She pulled a notebook out of her back and started writing quickly.

Reid felt Katie tug on his sleeve. When he looked at her, he found her hold a pencil out for him. Her worksheets neatly set out on the table.

"This isn't your comfort zone is it?" Faye asked looking up slightly her bangs creating a screen.

"No," Reid answered taking the pencil. "Most kids don't like me."

Faye smirked ad started typing on the keyboard. "Katie isn't most kids."

Reid looked at the first problem set up and started sorting the dice on the table into individualized groups. "So when you see a problem like Three _times_ four, you can think about it like this," he said pointing to the four different groups of three dice each.

Katie pointed to each dice with pencil and counted. "Twelve?" she asked.

Reid nodded and watched her slowly write the answer in a box. He looked at the page and let out a mental sigh. _So much for sleep_, he thought.

An hour later and Reid was paying for his meal. Sean looked at him as he handed over the spare change. "The next lunch, breakfast, or dinner is on me. I'm sorry Katie can be a little stubborn."

Reid smiled. "Actually I kind of enjoyed it. It was nice, not thinking about all the stuff I see at work."

Sean smiled. "Well then, I'm glad that Katie was able to help distract you. Come again soon."

Reid nodded before making his way out of the diner. He looked into the window at the two sisters as they laughed at something. He crossed the street and headed towards his apartment a small smile on his face.

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Author's Note: Okay, so this was just an idea that popped into my head last night when I was thinking about what to do for a research paper. So I started writing. I thought it was cute and it was fun.

This can be just a one shot, or I can write an entire story about Reid's interactions with the McDonough's. Anyway, let me know what you want to see by dropping me a review. Also, what did you think? Is there anything that I can improve one? Just let me know in a review.

Ren


	2. Chapter 2

Author: Ren Kayashima

Rating: T

Disclaimer: I really hate that I have to do this. I do not own Criminal Minds. The title and its characters belong to CBS and its original creator.

_**Shout Outs: Wow, okay, so there are a lot of reviewers from the first chapter. So here goes it. Thank you to the following reviewers: **__**mouzymou**__**, **__**SpecialXAgentXCorinthos**__**, **__**Threebagsfulled**__**, **__**Nymphadora-CullenBAU**__**, **__**Publicly-Myself**__**, **__**Eve**__**, **__**SSAFunbar**__**, **__**GothChiq80**__**, **__**Yazzi**__**, **__**Habaeus Diem**__**, and **__**EmoPanda522**__**. I really appreciated seeing all of your kind reviews. A special thank you to **__**Habaeus Diem**__**, for all the help she has provided with my writing.**_

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Chapter Two: What's a _pampey yolk?_

Reid was sitting in the plush red booths of the New Haven Diner, quietly pondering a new paper to publish. He had his small cup of coffee, eight sugars, and a plate of over medium eggs, sausage, and whole grain toast.

It was the rare weekends off, where he would actually have a full breakfast, which he truly and most sincerely enjoyed. Other mornings, he was always in a rush to chase America's most disturbed. Coffee was the only breakfast item that traveled well when you took D.C metro, and even Reid was known to spill his beloved, over sugared, caffeinated beverage on occasion.

The diner was relatively empty, only a few tables were occupied by elderly couples who probably stopped cooking some time ago because of repeated instances of forgetting to turn the stove off.

Reid popped one of his eggs with his fork and proceeded to soak of the yellow yoke with a piece of toast. He knew that it wasn't the healthiest of meals, but it was one he had carried since childhood.

He looked towards the back of the diner where a door opened. He was a small head of red hair run behind the bar. A blond waitress smiled and grabbed a tray from the serving rack and handed it to the girl. Reid felt himself smile when Katie came out from behind the bar holding the tray. The plate held a large waffle that had been covered in a whip cream smiley face. A glass of apple juice sat next to the place.

Katie started to look around and grinned widely when she saw Reid. Her face lit up as she carefully walked over.

"Hi Spencer," She smiled. She teetered slightly on the back of her heels, but maintained a firm grasp on her tray.

"Hello Katie," Reid greeted.

Today Katie's color scheme was purple. A purple t-shirt, purple jeans, and purple all stars. He red hair had been braided into two parts and fell over her shoulders. Sure enough the braids were secured by purple hair bands.

Katie set her tray down and slid into the booth. "Can I sit with you?"

"Yes," Reid answered. "How was school?" he asked dipping his toast into the yoke once more and taking a bite.

Katie watched him for a moment in curiosity. "You eat your pampey yolks like Faye does," she said scooping up some whip cream with her spoon and shoving it into her mouth.

"Pampey yolks?" he asked. Was she talking about the eggs?

"Yeah, pampey yolks," she nodded pointing to the plate.

Why did kids have to be so confusing? They had non-existent words for everything, and you never know what they're talking about.

Faye came out from the back of the diner and Reid let out a sigh of relief. She could shed some light on the vocabulary of her eight-year-old sister.

Like Katie, Faye first walked behind the bar and grabbed a plate and a glass of lemonade. She was dressed in black jeans and a black t-shirt. Under the t-shirt was a white thermal with alternating red and blue stripes. She wore a pair of classic black and white all stars and her hair had been pulled into a thick messy bun.

She walked over to Reid and Katie and smiled at the agent. "Good morning Dr. Reid. How are you?"

Reid smiled slightly and gave his usual small wave. "Good and you?"

"Pleasant," she answered after a moment of thinking. "Do you mind if I join you?" she asked. She stayed standing until Reid gave a small welcoming nod.

"What's a pampey yolk?" he asked as he looked at Faye's plate. It was the same meal as his.

Faye popped a sausage link into her mouth and pointed to her eggs as she chewed. She moved the toast to the side of her plate and swallowed. "Katie calls over medium eggs pampey yolks, because of the sound they make when you pop them," she explained as she cut away the white of the egg with her fork.

"Pampey?" Reid asked still not understanding.

"Pop your egg and tell me what you hear," Faye ordered politely as she stabbed some egg whites.

Reid pressed his fork on top of the unpopped eggs and the swish of contained air and yolk combined to make a nearly inaudible sound. It wasn't quite a _pop_, but he wasn't sure if it was a _pamp_ either. What did a _pamp_ sound like?

Perhaps it made sense to eight-year-old Katie. After all she was a little girl, constantly learning new things about the world. She didn't know how to describe a particular sound with her limited vocabulary, so she made a word up. Having never run into this problem himself, Reid wondered if this was typical behavior.

He thought back to his psychology lectures from college, trying to remember the specific developmental stage of children Katie's age.

By age seven, children started to think internally, but at what age did they make up words? Reid was perplexed.

"Dr. Reid?" Faye asked. Reid snapped out of his thoughts and looked at her. "You went catatonic on us for a minute there," she smiled gently.

"What's Catonic mean?" Katie asked as she doused her waffle is sweet maple syrup.

"Cat-a-tonic," Faye corrected. "It mean unresponsive."

"When did Katie start using the word pampey?" Reid asked needing more insight into the child.

Faye quietly chewed her food while she thought back. She let the hand holding he fork go limp. "She might have been about three and a half. Oh wait… it's not the sound of the pop. It's the sound it makes when you flip it in the pan," she realized. "I'm sorry. We've called pampey yokes for so long, I forgot where it originated," she laughed slightly.

So the _pamp_ was the egg slapping against the pan? Reid thought about it and accepted this explanation. It made the slightest bit more sense now, but a part of him was still lost.

"Spencer, are you going to come by the diner more often?" Katie asked. A small bit of syrup dripped down the side of her mouth.

"I'd like to," Reid nodded. The diner was nice and quiet.

Faye studied Reid as she mechanically chewed her food. She wanted to ask him about it his job, but with Katie's presence it made striking up a conversation difficult. After all, you don't ask about serial killers and rapists in front of your little sister.

Katie looked up at Faye. "When is Brittney's mom going to get here to take me to the movies?" she asked.

Faye pulled her sleeve up and looked at the simple watch that rested on the inside of her wrist. "Mrs. Lisenfeld will be here in twenty minutes. You're spending the night there, so don't forget your Dora travel bag," Faye answered.

Twenty minutes later and Faye took her chance before the young doctor left. "Dr. Reid, would you mind telling me about your job at the FBI?"

"Do you want to join?"

Faye shook her head rapidly. She was afraid of guns. It scared her beyond belief that her parents kept a couple guns in their house. She's seen her dad's sniper rifle more than once, each time sending a cold shiver down her spine. She reached behind her back and scratched her shoulder.

"I'm going to be a nurse," she answered. "Like my mom and grandmother."

"So you're going to get your degree in nursing?" Reid asked. Registered nurses could make a lot of money.

"Do you always chase serial killers, or is it just one of the many things the BAU does?" Faye asked taking a bite of her remaining piece of toast.

"The BAU has covered cases the involve kidnapping, arson, cults, and serial killers," Reid answered.

"How do you get these cases?" Faye asked pushing her fork around aimlessly. She propped her head up on her closed fist and watched him. "I can't really imagine there being that many criminals in D.C. Well, unless you want to include politicians."

"We have to get invited in by the local law enforcement. We've gone to Canada and Mexico once," Reid replied. "Mostly, we go around to a lot of cities to give crash courses in profiling."

"How accurate is profiling?" Faye asked. "I mean, there are times when you can be wrong. Right?"

"It's a tool we use," Reid shifted slightly. She was being rather blunt with him. "There will always be flaws in a tool."

"But you wouldn't use it if it wasn't an accurate tool, so it works most of the time." Faye said. She looked around the diner and smiled. "Profile me," she challenged with a smirk.

Reid eye's widened. "What?"

"It shouldn't be too hard. I'm an open book." Faye stated the smile growing as she watched him internally panic.

"I don't think I should," Reid said.

"If you're worried about offending me, don't worry about it," Faye looked at him. "I just want to see how it works."

"Uh… okay," Reid sighed he looked at Faye and began to study her and compared this meeting to their first. "You're an honor student… but sometimes you feel like you don't belong there."

Faye frowned. "Calculus is hard, everything else is simple enough. Then again I hate math," she explained as she took a sip from her drink. She nodded at Reid to continue.

"With your mom and dad gone, you've had to step up to the plate as the responsible adult. Sometimes you don't seem to mind, but other times you catch yourself acting too much like the parent."

Faye nodded. He was right, she loved Katie and would do anything for her, but she missed hanging out with her friends on the weekend. The weekends were filled with play dates, babysitting, and child birthday parties. It was exhausting to chase a bunch of second graders around a playground, no matter how entertaining it could be.

"Taking care of your sister has limited your ability to socialize with people your own age. That would change though if your uncle didn't work at the diner every night."

"All very true, and you got all of this from two visits," Faye smiled. "You're good Dr. Reid."

"It is my job and it was one visit actually. This time only confirmed my theories," Reid said. He reached into his bag and grabbed his wallet. He slipped out a business card and held it out for Faye.

"What's this?" Faye asked taking it. She looked at the official FBI business card and her face creased in confusion.

"Calculus isn't very hard. I helped your sister with math. It only seems fair that I help you with your math too," Reid explained.

"You don't have to do that Dr. Reid," Faye said. She pulled out her cell phone though and entered the number into the address book. Just in case.

"It's nice here," Reid told her.

"I'm glad you like the diner. It means you'll keep coming back," Faye smiled.

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Author's Note: alright, so here is the second chapter. I hope you enjoyed it. I certainly enjoyed writing it. I'm in the middle of writing some darker stuff for one of my other stories, so this is a nice reprieve. I'm actually quite impressed with all of the reviews I got asking me to continue with this story. I wasn't even sure if it was going to be all that popular. I guess that shows how much I know.

Also, while thinking about what I wanted to happen with this story, I had a very dark thought. I want to know if you guys want to see some sort of conflict in the story, or if you just want me to keep it humorous. I think adding conflict will add more to the story and would help my writing a bit more, but I don't want to put it in if everyone doesn't want to see it. So let me know.

Anyway, drop me a review telling me what you think about this chapter. Reviews are a great way of letting me know what there that is could use some improvement. So let me know. Don't be shy. I love all reviews.

Ren


	3. Chapter 3

Author: Ren Kayashima

Rating: T

Disclaimer: I really hate that I have to do this. I do not own Criminal Minds. The title and its characters belong to CBS and its original creator.

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Chapter Three: A Grizzly Beard

The BAU team sat in the only large round booth of the New Haven Diner. The older members wondered why Reid would choose this place for lunch. Collectively the team had been lecturing at two separate colleges in the D.C area. Garcia had agreed to meet them at the diner.

Reid was in the middle of the group in between Prentiss and Garcia.

"Seriously Reid," Morgan said. "I hadn't pegged you for a diner type of guy."

"What happened to trying to drag us to get Indian Food?" Hotch asked.

Reid looked at the table and picked at his nails. "I like the food here," Reid said.

Sean came over and smiled. "Welcome back Dr. Reid."

"Hi Sean," Reid said waving from the center of the booth seat.

Katie came bouncing in. She was in a blue raincoat and blue jeans. Her hair was pulled into a ponytail and she had on a pair of blue gloves. She just about skipped past Reid when Sean called her name. She turned to focus on her Uncle.

"Where is Faye?" Sean asked. "Her report card came in the mail. I have to give her money."

"She's with Wes," Katie answered nonchalantly. She looked at him simply and smiled. She looked at the table and spotted Reid. "Spencer!" she yelled in excitement.

The team looked at the child in curiosity. What her connection to Reid. It was obvious that he frequented the diner, but what about the child.

"Hello Katie," Reid greeted smiling. He looked at his table mates. "These are my friends."

Katie looked at everyone. "Are you cops too?" she asked quickly.

Morgan leaned on the table a playful smirk on his face. "My name is Derek, how do you know 'Spencer'?"

"Spencer helps me with my math," Katie said.

Garcia looked at Reid. "You tutor little girls in math?" she asked nudging him.

Reid shifted slightly and looked at the table. "Katie doesn't like math, neither does Faye," he said. He looked at Katie. "Who's Wes?" he hadn't heard the name before.

"Wes is awesome. He's Faye's friend," Katie answered bobbing her head. "He makes these clicking sounds with his tongue. Faye can do it too, but I can't." she stated sadly.

Faye came into the diner and Sean sighed. He pulled out his wallet and pulled out a stack of twenties. He nodded to Faye who looked over and nodded. Katie looked at the money and began to pout. She crossed her arms and looked at the ground.

"Faye gets more money than I do," she said.

"That's because Faye got straight A's in eight classes. Your teacher told me the only subject you have an A in is math," Sean explained.

Faye held the hand of a tall teenage boy. He had shaggy blond hair. He work dark sunglasses and carried a white cane. He was in a black pea coat and black jeans. Faye guided the boy over to Sean and Katie.

Reid looked at her. "Faye, how did you do on you calculus test yesterday?" he asked.

Faye frowned and looked at the ground. She kicked a small piece of rolled up paper with her foot and refused to meet Reid's eye. "I got a ninety-two," she muttered.

Reid nodded. "That's good."

Faye looked up at him. "No it's not! You could take the test and get a hundred easily. This is why I hate math. English, History, Music, even Science are easy. Calculus sucks!" She took on a similar pout to Katie's.

The boy beside her smiled and squeezed her hand. "Come on Faye, a ninety-two is still an A. You could barely get a C before Dr. Reid's help."

Reid gestured to the team. "These are my friends and team members at the BAU," he said.

Sean handed over the cash begrudgingly before heading back to the kitchen, he looked back at Faye nervously. Faye stuffed the bills into her pocket and looked back at him. She frowned and looked at the ground.

"I'm Penelope Garcia," Garcia smiled. "Techie and cheering squad for this team." She slipped into her normal questioning mode.

Katie smiled shyly. "I like your glasses. She took off her raincoat to reveal an aqua t-shirt with a blue sequined butterfly.

"Thank you. Your t-shirt rocks," Garcia grinned.

"My name's Emily," Prentiss said from beside Reid. She leaned back in the booth.

"You're pretty," Katie smiled. She looked at Rossi. "You have a grizzly beard."

Rossi looked at her confused. Reid looked at Faye for a translation as he usually did. Faye let go of the boys hand and crouched down to hug Katie. She hugged her sister tight and sighed.

Faye stood up and looked at Rossi. "Mr. Rossi right?" she asked. She recognized the man from his books.

Dave nodded and smiled at Faye. "Our dad grows out his facial hair some times. Much like yours, he likes to chase Katie through the house pretending he's a bear. When he catches her, he rubs his stubble against Katie's cheek. Hence the name grizzly beard."

The entire team nodded. Thing made sense and all was right with the world. Hotch looked at Katie and smiled thinking of Jack. "How old are you Katie?"

"Eight," Katie answered.

Faye took Katie's coat and set it down in a booth next to the teams. The boy took a seat in the booth and smiled in Faye's direction. Faye walked over and gave him a quick peck on the lips. She looked at Katie. "Apple or Orange juice?" she asked.

Katie looked at her sister sternly and placed her hands on her small hips. "Apple. Faye you should know that," she scolded.

The table held back their laughs as Faye stared at the child bug eyed. Faye's gaze softened and she held her hands up in defeat.

"Well excuse the H-E-double hockey sticks out of me," Faye sighed. "Apple juice it is."

Katie turned her attention to Hotch. "What's your name?"

"My name is Aaron," Hotch answered slipping into dad mode.

Katie scrunched up her face. "My friends name is Erin," she said. "That's a girl's name."

The teenage boy smiled and shook his head. "Katie, does your friend spell it with an E?"

Katie nodded and realized the boy couldn't see her. "E-R-I-N," she spelled out slowly.

"Well Aaron here, spells his name with an A," the boy said. "Boys can be named Aaron, but they spell it with an A to avoid confusion."

Katie shook her head. "I don't get it," she said sliding into the booth. "I'm all confuzzled." She propped herself up on her knew and looked at the BAU team.

"This is Wes Bell," she said. "He's the one that makes the cool clicking sound."

Faye walked over with a tray of drinks. "Katie its called echo location," she explained. "Wes uses sounds to see."

"But if your blind, you can't see," Katie said. "Miss. Cranston said so."

Wes laughed. "You're right Katie. I'm blind, but I don't need my eyes to see. Look, I can find your sister's hand without her help."

Faye held her hand up in front of Wes's face. She moved it in a waving motion until he reached out and stopped her hand with his own.

Katie's eyes widened as if she had just seen a magic trick. "Wow! That's so cool!" she exclaimed. She jumped out of the booth and stood next to him. "Can you find my nose?"

The team watched Wes hold out a flat hand testing the air. He moved closed to Katie's face. He placed his index finger on her nose and smirked. "Found it."

Katie giggled. Faye smiled and looked at the FBI agents. "Can I get you anything?"

Rossi looked at her and then at Reid. "How long have you known Reid?"

"Only a month, but he comes to the diner anytime we need help in math. Sean gives him free food in return. Sometimes we talk about science, but I'm taking Physics, which isn't too hard," she explained.

Emily nudged Reid. "That' nice of you," she said.

Reid looked at the table. "It's not a big deal, it's just tutoring." He took a sip of his coffee.

Hotch looked at Faye confused. "Most kids are afraid of Reid he stated.

Faye shrugged. "My dad's special forces and my mom's a combat nurse. Katie doesn't have a single fear gene in her body. I'm passing calculus with an A because of Dr. Reid's assistance, so he's an okay guy in my book."

"Your parents are both in the military?" Derek asked.

"Yep, both are overseas right now. We live with our Uncle Sean while they're gone."

Reid looked at Faye and realized that she had crossed her arms. She avoided eye contact and put on a false front.

"Do you have calculus work tonight?" Reid asked trying to draw something out.

Faye shook her head. Her gaze shifted to the two people who had just entered the diner. Katie looked over and her face lit up. "Mommy!" she shouted running toward the visitors in army fatigues.

The woman's red hair was pulled into a tight bun. She crouched down and hugged the eight-year-old.

Wes stood up and moved next to Faye. "Your mom's here?" he asked confused.

Faye stood there in shock. The team watched her grow pale and increasingly silent. "But their leave hasn't come up yet." She whispered after a minute.

"Faye, are you okay?" Reid asked.

Katie dragged a woman over and they were followed by a tall man with short blond hair and bright blue eyes.

"Hi dad," Faye spoke looking at the ground. "Why are you here?"

Her father frowned. "We got a request to come home on temporary leave," the man answered. "Your mom is taking Katie upstairs, why don't you and Wes go with."

Faye's mom placed a hand on Wes's shoulder before guiding Katie quietly into the back of the diner and away from the BAU.

"Bye Spencer," Katie called as the door closed.

"Is this about Sean?" Faye asked. "And the money and guns."

Her father looked at her. "You know about them?"

"They've only been in the back for a couple weeks, but I couldn't tell anyone," Faye said. "Sean's the only family member who can take care of us."

A group of FBI agents came into the diner guns drawn. Sean was pulled out of the kitchen and he looked at Faye.

0o0o0o0

Author's Note: Well that's where I'm ending it. We'll see more of the slight conflict in the next chapter. I hope you enjoy the early parts as well as the ending. I'm working on it right now.

Now it's your turn, review and let me know what you think. I love hearing from you guys.

Ren


	4. Chapter 4

Author: Ren Kayashima

Rating: T

Disclaimer: I really hate that I have to do this. I do not own Criminal Minds. The title and its characters belong to CBS and its original creator.

**Important Note at the end of the chapter. Please Read.**

0o0o0o0

Chapter Four:

"Faye, what did you do?" Sean yelled.

"I didn't say anything," Faye shouted. "You told me not too."

Faye's father looked at her. "I don't understand. You've known about the gun running?" he asked.

"I had left something in the back office," Faye frowned. "I came down to get it, and I saw Sean talking with someone about the guns."

An FBI agent walked over. "Ms. McDonough, do you know how serious this is?"

Faye nodded weakly. "I couldn't call the cops," she sniffed. She had to protect her sister.

"We need to ask you some questions," the agent said

Faye's father moved in front of her protectively. Faye moved closer to her dad instinctually. "What kind of questions?" he asked.

"We need her to tell up everything she knows," the agent explained. "We'll need to take her statement."

Spencer sat staring at Faye's bowed head and slumped shoulders. She had started to cry quietly. The entire BAU was quiet in their confusion, but no one more so than Spencer Reid. This was a serious problem and Faye McDonough was in the middle of it all.

"Are you aware that we can take your daughter in as an accessory?" the agent asked. "She knowingly hid illegal activity from the authorities."

Faye's hand snapped up at the thought of being arrested. "I didn't do anything wrong!" she shouted. She looked at her father. "Dad, I didn't do anything wrong." Panic had begun to rise in the small teen's voice.

"Faye," her father smiled turning around. He rested his hands on her shoulders. "Go with this agent, but don't say a word until I get there with a lawyer."

Fear started to grow in her stomach. "Why do I need a lawyer?"

Spencer tried to stand up, but the table prevented him from doing so. "Agent, my name is Dr. Spencer Reid. I'm an agent with the BAU can I ask what's going on?"

"Sean McDonough has been using his restaurant to transport and sell guns to local gangs," the agent explained.

Reid got an idea. "I'm requesting to question Faye," Spencer stated.

Hotch looked at Reid. "Reid, you shouldn't do that," he said. "Faye is a personal person to you."

"Hotch," Reid stated looking at his boss. "She's scared. We bother know that if there's an agent question her, it should be a woman. Or, at least someone who knows her. She's just a kid."

Hotch just stared at the young genius and nodded. He, Rossi, and Prentiss slipped out of the booth to let him out. Reid shuffled out carefully and smiled awkwardly at Faye. Faye's father looked at him warily. He stopped the young agent from moving any further by placing a hand on his shoulder.

"How do you know my daughter," he asked.

"He's my calculus tutor," Faye explained. "Dr. Reid I'd like you to meet Lieutenant Scott McDonough also known as my dad."

Scott looked at Reid in surprise. His daughter had been fighting him tooth and nail on getting a tutor, and she went and got one without his help. "Does she have an A?" he asked.

Reid nodded. He didn't dare speak because the army man actually intimidated him. It could have been that he was a full head taller and three times as strong, but Reid had the intelligence to beat the man in a quiz bowl. Maybe.

"And you're a FBI agent?"

Reid nodded again. "I've been coming to the dinner for the past two months now. I help both Faye and Katie with their math."

Scott looked at Reid coldly. "She doesn't say anything without me and our lawyer. Do you understand?" he asked quietly.

"Yes sir," Reid swallowed.

0o0o0o0

Spencer entered an interview room with two cups of coffee. Faye had laid her head down on the table and sad look had made her blue eyes dim a bit. "Are you okay?" Spencer asked. Although he already knew the answer.

"Can I really go to jail?" Faye asked.

"Maybe, but if your honest about what you know, the prosecution might not charge you," Spencer stated as he took a seat. He wasn't going to lie to the teenager. She made him promise to be honest with her on the car ride over. A promise was a promise, and he wasn't going to break this one.

"Spencer, I can talk to you right?" Faye mumbled as she stared at the blank walls of the interrogation room.

Spencer pushed her cup of coffee towards her. "Not until your lawyer gets here," Spencer said. "What did you do in school?" he asked happy that there was a different subject to talk about with the redhead.

Faye sat up and wiped her eyes before taking the coffee cup in her hands. "In Economics we started a budget project."

"What do you have to do?" Reid asked. He had been given a similar project when he was thirteen. It took him four hours to research and put together.

"Well we're given fake money and have a list of things we need to survive on our own. Like an apartment, energy bill, water. We have to create a budget that works. You get bonus points if you have money left over."

"That sounds interesting," Reid smiled.

"Not really. I did it in my honor's fifth grade homework sessions," Faye sniffed as she took a sip of the warm beverage. "I just have to adjust for the difference in funds. The fifth grade one was harder," Faye said while she picked at her nails and looked at her lap.

"What did you do in Psychology?" Reid asked. The two of them talked about this class the most. Reid often directed Faye to some material for the several papers she had to write.

"We had a sub so I slept while he put in a movie about Africa Animal," Faye sighed. She wanted to be home with her parents.

It had been months since the high school senior had seen her mom and dad. It had been like this for the past ten years. Before that they were moving from base to base and when they finally settled in the D.C area, both parents were off to fight in a war. When her parents were on leave, they would go on camping trips and family vacations, but they were never long enough.

"Why did you watch a movie on African animals?" Reid asked.

"Because Jackson Curtis hid the documentary on twins," Faye answered. "He's only in AP Psychology because his mother is making him take it."

The door opened and Faye's father came in with an older man with greying hair.

"Faye you didn't say anything right?" her dad asked.

Faye looked at Reid. "We were talking about school," she said. "Hi Uncle Mark," she said looking at the greying man.

"Hello Faye, we're going to settle this matter. So don't worry," the man told her with a gentle smile. He looked at Spencer. "I'm Ms. McDonough's lawyer and will be advising her as you ask her your questions."

Spencer nodded. "All right," he started. "I'm going to answer some questions. Just answer based on what you know and what your lawyer tells you."

Faye nodded. She was still afraid of the room, but being with people she knew put her at ease.

"Did you know that your Uncle was using the family restaurant to run guns for the local gang?" Spencer began.

"Don't answer that," Mark said quickly.

"Sort of," Faye answered.

Spencer stared at the teen. She hadn't listened to her lawyer. This could be really good or really bad. "Can you elaborate?"

"No," Mark said firmly.

Faye looked at Spencer. "I knew that weapons were involved, but I never knew the parties or gangs involved."

"How did you learn about these activities?"

"Faye listen to Mark," Scott told his daughter. He wasn't going to see one of his baby girls go to jail for her brother's mistakes.

"I can't do that!" Faye said. "Look the only reason I kept this a secret is because of Katie," she stated angrily.

Scott looked at Faye dumbfounded. "What?"

"Sean is the only family in the area," Faye said. "Katie's entire social structure is here. If Sean goes to jail, we have to go to Baltimore and start over. She's eight-years-old, you can't do that to her. What about me. This is my last semester of high school. If we move I have to pay out of state tuition at any college I go to. I have a boyfriend."

Spencer looked at Faye. "What do you know about the gun running that your uncle was involved in?"

"Nothing!" Faye stated. "Only that there were guns. All I saw was Sean hold a gun while he stood behind grandpa's desk in the back office. He was talking to someone, but I didn't see who."

Spencer stared at the high schooler. He could actually understand why she kept her mouth shut. She probably had spent a large majority of her life without her parents around every day, and Katie was only eight. So her friends were everything.

Spencer stood up. He had to fix this. Faye was put in the middle of something that should never have happened. "Excuse me," he left the room quietly to talk to the agents on the case.

Scott stood up to hug Faye. She wrapped her arms around him and began to cry. "Why can't you come home?" she asked. "We miss you so much."

"I know Faye. I know," he father consoled her as he rubbed her back.

Reid came back into the interview room. "You can go home Faye," he said. "The FBI has everything they need."

Scott looked at Reid. "What's going to happen to my brother?"

"He's going to jail."

Faye stared at the young doctor. "What about me and Katie?"

Reid sighed. He couldn't figure that part out.

"Faye, we'll figure something out," Scott stated. He hugged Faye again.

0o0o0o0

Author's Note: I apologize profusely for the long wait on this update. To say I had writer's block is a gross understatement. I've gone through entire packages on binder paper as I tried to come up with a chapter that I was okay to post. I still don't think that this is everything that I wanted it to be, but its close enough.

The next update won't take nearly as long to write, but I can't guarantee a quick update either. There's a lot of planning that goes into this particular story and it still has yet to sort itself out in my brain. So I ask for a little patience.

**Important Note: I'm a college student in the last three weeks of her spring semester. It's the home stretch and the homework is piling up, so I have less time to write. I've got two accounts on fanfiction. One for these tales and another for the anime series I have in progress. I am trying to divide my time equally between the ten stories I have currently in progress. If you have me on am author alert, you'll notice that some stories are updated more often. This is because they have been flowing through my brain a lot faster than this one. **

**If it helps, I have a twitter account. I use it as a means to keep everyone updated on what's going on. If you ever want to find out the status of The Reid Effect all you have to do is request to follow me and ask me a question. I'd be happy to answer your questions if you have them. The link to my account is in my profile. **

I feel like asking you to review after such a long wait period would be selfish, but I'd like to know what you think. Just send it as a review, or feel free to private message me with your thoughts.

Shane


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